Automatic gravity cut-out for electrical circuits.



No. 644,072. Patented Feb. 27, 1900.

- W. HANLON.

AUTOMATIC GRAVITY CUT-OUT FOR ELECTRICAL CIRCUITS.

il f I UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM HANLON, OF POUGHKEEPSIE, NEW YORK.

AUTOMATIC GRAVITY CUT-OUT FOR ELECTRIC-AL CIRCUITS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 644,072, dated February 27, 1900.

Application filed June 20, 1899- To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that 1, WILLIAM HANLON, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of the city of Poughkeepsie and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Improvementin Automatic Gravity Out-Outs for Electrical Circuits, of which the following is a clear, full, and exact specification.

The invention relates to that class of cutouts in which the circuit is broken by the melting of a piece of fusible metal placed in the line, and has for its object to replace the connection, when burned out, automatically with a new conductor and also to render the insertion of new conductors sufficiently easy for any person unskilled to insert the same.

My invention consists in certain details of construction and arrangement of parts, as will be hereinafter fully described and claimed. In the drawings, Figure 1 is a sectional plan at the line X Y, Fig. 2, with the lefthand automatic device left off. Fig. 2 is an end elevation of the device. Fig. 3 is an end View, partly in section. Fig. l shows another form of gravity-arm and cross-head. Fig. 5 is a plan view of the same.

The reference-numerals designate the same parts in all the drawings.

I make the insulating-blocks 1 with the top 2, designed to be fastened to the usual beam or support, and the bottom 3, forming part of the same, on which I secure the contact conducting-blocks 13, which are connected to the main-line wires 12 by the set-screws 11. The braces or supports 4 are secured to the base 3 by the screws 14 and pivotally support the gravity-arms 6, shown in the drawings as divided into three parts, but which may contain as many arms as may be embraced in an angle of ninety degrees, so that they will drop into contact by their own weight as the fusible ends of the cross-head is melted. The ends of the cross-head 6 of the arms 6 are shown in Figs. 1, 2, and 3 as forked and to form the jaws 7 to hold the blocks of fuse metal 9 by the set-screws 8. The contact ends of the fuse-blocks 9 are beveled downward and rest on the upwardly-beveled faces of the con- $erial No. 721,266. (No model.)

tact conducting-blocks 13, as shown at 10. In this manner it will be seen that when the fuse metal 9 is melted or burned away the cross-head and arm which held it will drop down by gravity and the next one in order will take its place. When they are all used, the arms may be raised, the burned fuses removed, and new ones inserted in their place.

In Fig. 41 show another form of cross-head and fuse metal.

The cross-head o" is pivoted to the arm 6, so that it may turn when one end is melted and pass more freely between the contactblocks 13, as shown in Fig. 4. Also the fuse metal may be in the form of wire and held in the cross-head by the screw 8 in the usual way and rest in the grooves 17 on the contactblocks 13. l

I claim as my invention 1 1. In a device of the character specified the combination with a base of insulating material, of contact conducting-blocks having beveled faces 10 and grooves 17 secured to said base, the line-wires 12 attached to said blocks, the supports 4 secured to the base, the gravity-arms (5 pivot-ally supported in the outer end thereof, the cross-head 6 on said arms, the jaws 7 on said cross-head and the fuse metal held in said jaws and resting in the grooves 17 on the contact-blocks, as described and for the purpose set forth.

2. In a device of the character specified the combination with a base of insulating material,of contact conducting-blocks havi ngbeveled faces 10 and grooves 17 secured to said base, the line-wires 12 attached to said blocks, the supports at secured to the base, the gravity-arms 6 pivotally supported in the outer end thereof, the cross-head 6 pivoted to the outer end of said arms, the jaws 7 on said cross-head and the fuse metal held in said jaws and resting in the grooves 17 on the contact-blocks as described and for the purv pose set forth.

WILLIAM HANLON. Witnesses:

GEORGE SAGUE, GEORGE G. HOFFMAN. 

